CAD 179 Vs. Studio Projects C1

[EVT]

Hi everyone,
I was wondering how the Cad 179 and SP C1 would be compared. What would you all think one or the other is better for a specific application?

They are equal in price. I was wondering which one would be picked over the other, and why.

I am interested in buying the Cad 179 for vocals (mostly female).
But what about the SP c1?

I currently have the sp b1. Is the c1 similar? I would want something different, so I would probably lean more towards the Cad 179.

Any other suggestions at this price range?
Mostly for vocals, but also for acoustic guitar. Style pop/rock...
Oh, and preamp I'm using for it would be the Safesound p1... which is awesome by the way!

thanks,
evt

 

[mattamatta]

I dont own the C1, but a friend of mine does, and I've heard it just a few times. From my impression it's a bit brighter sounding, one of the "hyped high end vocal kinda mics". I haven't directly compared it to the m179, as I didn't have my m179's at the time, but I compared it to the mxl990, and through the mediocre pre, there wasn't much difference in the solo'd track, although I thought I heard a hint better low end in the phones (And I'm sure through monitors in the context of a mix there's no comparison).

I might be able to do some more head to head comparison this summer, as I'm undoubtedly gonna be doing joint recording sessions with the friend who has the C1, but I'm sure that wont be of much help to you by then, as you probably want to know now.

I've been using the m179's on vocals lately (in place of the mxl990, my other ldc) And it works ok for me with some eq.

I'm finding I like to add just about one decibel at about 3 and 5 khz to bring out more of the vocalness.

And also, on my voice at least, when I cut about 2-3db from around the 500hz area, that's when it really falls into place in the mix for me.

I dont think the mic on it's own is specifically tailored that well for the kind of vocal mic for my voice, and I didn't expect it to. I bought it for use for drum overheads, guitar cabs, anything I wanna do in stereo or with different patterns. But some eq will easily bring it to the kind of response I'm most often looking for with lead vocals, and it's just generally a bit higher quality of a mic than my cheaper 990.

On acoustic guitar it's ok, not quite a typical LDC style sound, but it can get some pretty usable stuff... I've only used it in the room here in my college studend-oriented apartment which isn't very good, but it should sound a lot better in the places I record back home.

Haven't used it for drums yet, but from what I'm hearing of it on sources I have used it, it should sound sweet.

The low end seems to go down pretty far.

Not much of a comparison to the C1, but hopefully th at should offer some ideas on what the m179 has been like for me.

Overall I'd say I'm pretty pleased with the mic, and expect it to dramatically increase the quality of my drum recordings.

Looks pretty cool when put up against a guitar amp too.

 

[billisa]

A lot of people really love the M179. I believe on a graph from "The Listening Sessions" the M179 is put almost right at the crosshairs of neutrality. The C1 is up the scale of brightness. Naturally, a lot of people love the C1 for vocals.

 

[EVT]

Thanks for the replies...
I have the SP B1 right now. Is the C1 similar? I like the b1on vocals so far, but I wanted to upgrade a bit. Any other mic's for around this much.

I actually really want to get the Rode NTK. I may just wait and save to get it instead of spending on another mic.

evt

 

[billisa]

Thanks for the replies...
I have the SP B1 right now. Is the C1 similar? I like the b1on vocals so far, but I wanted to upgrade a bit. Any other mic's for around this much.

I actually really want to get the Rode NTK. I may just wait and save to get it instead of spending on another mic.

evt

I have the B1 too, and like it on the voices I've done it on, but I don't think anyone feels it's as good as the C1 on vocals. How different are they? I haven't a clue. My guess is, another mic like the NTK might be a better, more diverse choice than staying in the SP family. Though you might want to consider the Studio Projects TB1.

 

[EVT]

I have read that read a lot of posts and people seem to love the ntk. I was thinking the same thing about the NTK.... "more diverse choice than staying in the SP family."
The SP tb1 looks nice. I wonder how it compares to the NTK.
I love the SP b1... I'm running it through a safesound P1. It sounds excellent, but, I wanted to upgrade, and see how much greater a sound I could get.

I wish I had the money for this beautiful ribbon mic!!!! http://www.frontendaudio.com/AEA R84.htm

the NTK and the aea ribbon mic would be amazing to have....
but, more money, money, money....
evt

 

[baekgaard]

The B1 and C1 sound rather different, if you ask me (have both). B1 is a more "neutral" mic, albeit on the bright side, with the LDC characteristics. C1 has much more colour (by design), which makes it better on some sources and worse on those where it emphasizes the wrong frequencies.

The TB1 and B1 don't sound that much different, if you ask me. Sure, the TB1 is a bit fuller and slightly smoother and has a slight tube sound. But the difference between B1 and C1 are larger than between the B1 and the C1. I ended up sending the TB1 back and went for the C1 instead.

Another mic that you might want to consider would be the ADK hamburg, from what I've been able to read here (or the vienna). I haven't tested it, but it gets very favourable mention here -- read up on it in other recent threads.


Note that you can do a lot with placement of the mic (how close, where in the room, what angle pointing at you and where on your head/chest it points) -- if you're reasonably new to this, I'd recommed that you spend a bit more time experimenting before buying your next mic. Sure, new mics are nice... but learning to use the old ones to their full potential is cheaper, and it also helps you when you eventually buy the next mic ;-)


-- Per.

 

[Big Kenny]

The C3 sounds great through the safe sound. The CAD m179 sounds great throuh the safe sound. I don't have my C1 but if you like I can borrow one and compare the three. Another studio close by has one and we share some gear on occasion/

 

[EVT]

Big Kenny,
Thanks for the reply. The cad 179, c3, and c1 comparison would be excellent if possible. I'm actually looking for a mic that would work well with my voice. I actually posted another post, and I was given a few recommendations. What do you think about the adk hamburg?

Here is a link to one of our recent recordings. I used the Studio Projects B1 on the vocals through the safesound for the song "this ghost". Maybe you can get a better idea of my vocal style and range. I like the way the b1 sounds, but I would like to know what other mic's may be more suited for my voice.

http://corrientesmusic.com/music.html
thanks :0)
evt

 

[DJL]

No doubt... the CAD M179.

Hi everyone,
I was wondering how the Cad 179 and SP C1 would be compared. What would you all think one or the other is better for a specific application?

They are equal in price. I was wondering which one would be picked over the other, and why.

I am interested in buying the Cad 179 for vocals (mostly female).
But what about the SP c1?

I currently have the sp b1. Is the c1 similar? I would want something different, so I would probably lean more towards the Cad 179.

Any other suggestions at this price range?
Mostly for vocals, but also for acoustic guitar. Style pop/rock...
Oh, and preamp I'm using for it would be the Safesound p1... which is awesome by the way!

thanks,
evt

I like the Cad M179 better than the SP C1... because, IMO, the M179 is smoother, takes EQ better, and doesn't have a harsh hyped high end... and the M179 works on more voices... whereas the C1 is more of a hit or miss type vocal mic... oh, and the CAD M179 is also a multi-pattern mic. The CAD M179 gets my vote.

 

[baekgaard]

I'm not Big Kenny, but...

Big Kenny ... What do you think about the adk hamburg?

Sorry, I'm not Big Kenny, but I hope you don't mind me giving a comment on this?

Check this post and the links in it, if you want to know more about the adk mics: http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?p=1370516#post1370516

Rgds,


-- Per.

 

[Dot]

One advantage of the M179 is that it picks up a lot less off-axis sound than the C1. So if you have a shitty-sounding untreated room you'll most likely get better results on many applications with the M179. What the C1 does well is colored, bright, hyped vocals which works great for pop music. The C1 does not record acoustic instruments well, IMO. [ The B1 is a much better instrument mic. ] The M179 is more neutral, not particularly flattering. Overall, though, you'd get more mileage out of it on more applications - plus it's multi-pattern.

In most cases for people now looking for a C1, I'd recommend an ADK Vienna instead. The Vienna also works equally well on vocals and acoustic instruments, so you'll get much more use out of it than a C1. The C1 is still a great mic for the money, but there have been better mics coming on the market recently in that same price range.

 

[Big Kenny]

Upon listening to the voice, I would try out a CAD m179. You don't need much eq on that sweet vocal and the CAD will give you back what you put in. In this case, my sense is, that'll be great! Dot has always given excellent advice and you would be wise to follow his counsel as well.

 

[EVT]

thanks everyone,
All replies are greatly appreciated! )

I actually went with the adk Hamburg on ebay for $185, $197 total including shipping. It seemed like the way to go... a good deal... so I hope it was a good choice.

I hear that the studio projects B1 is more well liked for instruments. I will be mic'ng acoustic guitar, so I will keep that in mind.

I am still interested in getting the CAD 179. I will pick one up eventually.
thanks again...

evt

 

[baekgaard]

Let us know how you like the Hamburg when you get it.

Now that you (almost) have a LDC, maybe you should consider a pair of SDC mics as your next move instead of another SDC? Sure, the B1 can be nice and pretty versatile too, but if you get a good LDC, I would personally go for a SDC pair next.

I just finished making some $5 shockmounts for my Oktava MC012's and played around with some acoustic guitar, testing out placement and the mounts. They sound pretty sweet and full on my D41 when placed at 12th fret and at the bridge (or as X-Y pair around 12th fret). Now that I figured a better way of placing them, I prefer those to the LDC I have, although the B1 will certainly also work.

Just a thought...


-- Per.

 

[noisedude]

I agree that I wouldn't be desperate to add a tonne of different tonal colour to that voice! And I really like the song!

One mic I've used that might really work for you is the Audio Technica AT4050 - it's pretty neutral mic but has enough detail and sparkle in the highs to make it work for you. I've heard of other female vocalists using it, and have had luck with it on my own voice for acoustic/live-type tracks.

Sound on Sound just did a review on the Røde NT2A and they reckoned that this new version is a pretty transparent mic, and has a lot of detail. It's also very low-noise, which might be good cos I guess your singing is quite quiet compared to a lot of blokes or a guitar amp? It's also multi-pattern so worth considering - pretty cheap to buy but doesn't come with a shockmount.

Don't know anything about the M179 except that I've never heard a bad word said about it. I'd look at that and the NT2A and be saving up with an eye towards the AT4050 (or the Shure KSM-44, which people I trust have told me is quite similar).

 

[EVT]

Thanks for the help, and the compliments! I can't wait to check out the hamburg. I'll definitely post my thoughts about it, and another song to show the comparison on the vocal recordings.
evt

 

[Paj]

M179

EVT:

You can compare any mics for sound but the M179 is really a different animal than the C1 (re: DJL's post). If you want a cardoid for voice only, take the one that sounds best to you (even better, sounds/sits best and in a mix). If you need flexibilty, the C1 does not (and was not designed to) compete with the M179. As a matter of fact, the "continously" variable pattern nature of the CAD places it in a rather sparsely populated category of mics and, as far as I know, the only one at that low a price point.

Yet another review:

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/oct01/articles/cadmics.htm

Paj
8^)